Bowling alley



March `19, 1940.

J. R. KAlsERMAN lBOWLING ALLEY Filed Feb. 6, 1959 Patented Mar. 19, 1940 2,194,146 BOWLING ALLEY Jacob R. Kaiserman, Helena, Mont., assignor of one-half to Arthur W. Merkle, Butte, Mont.

Application February 6, 1939, Serial No. 254,957

5 Claims.

This invention rrelatesto bowling alleys and more particularly to improved means for indicating to the player when the ten pins have been accurately setv up.

Devices of this general character are known but are generally open to the objection that mechanism carried by the respective ten pins is subject to severe shocks and apt to be jammed or otherwise injured in playing.

The object of the present invention is to provide improved and simplied mechanism for indicating the correct positioning of ten pins in a bowling alley.

A further object is to provide a device of the' character indicatedwith no movable parts in the ten pin.

A further object is to provide a device of the character indicated, operated by magnetic means.

Further objects will appear in the course of the following detailed description.

The invention consists in the novel construetion, arrangements, and combinations of parts, hereinafter more particularly described and claimed.

One sheet of drawings accompanies this specification as part thereof, in which like reference characters indicate like parts throughout.

Figure l is a perspective view of a bowling alley showing an indicator board and assembled ten pms;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary vertical cross-sectional view taken through a portion of a ten pin and a portion of the floor immediately thereunder,

including one form of the present invention;

Figure 3 is a bottom plan view of a ten pin; and

Figure 4 is a plan view of the bowling alley floor showing a ten pin platform.

In accordance with the present invention each of the ten pins is provided withan axial bore 2 extending up from its bottom in which is positioned a permanent magnet 3 having its lower end beveled as at 4 to provide a reduced end face 5. An end plate t of non-magnetic material is countersunk into the end of the ten pin, being provided with an inwardly directed annular flange l, having a tapered bore corresponding to and adapted to receive the beveled end of magnet 3. By the construction described it will be apparent that the reduced end face 5 of the magnet 3 is directed against a relatively thin portion of the non-magnetic material immediatelyv beneath same, while the beveled faces of the magnet are surrounded by relatively deep portions of nonmagnetic material, thus concentrating the magnetic field through the plate 6 to the portion immediately beneath the endl face 5 of the magnet. The plate 6 is secured' to the ten pin in any suitable manner here illustrated as by screws 9.-

In the floor of the bowling alley are positioned a plurality of ten pin platforms Ill, arranged to conform with the desired set up of the ten pins, one platform for each ten pin. The structure of each of these platforms is identical, and a description of one applies to all.

Each platform comprises an annular plate 8 of provided with Spanner sockets I I. Projecting downwardly from platform I is a stud I2 having an internal bore I3, the upper end of the bore being beveled inwardly as at I4 to provide a relatively restricted, thin ceiling centrally of platform I0. Within the bore I3 is slidably mounted a permanent magnet I'I, having its upper end beveled as at I8 to provide a reduced upper end face I9 of opposite polarity to the downwardly directed face `of the magnets in the ten pins. On the bottom of magnet I1 is a stem 20 carrying a contact member 2I positioned between two electrical contacts 22-22, which are mounted in a non-conductive plug 23, secured by tight frictional contact with the bore I3. A pin 21 is positioned in the side wall of stud I2 and projects into the bore I3 below magnet I1 to restrict the downward fall of magnet I'I to a position slightly below the face of the platform I0. In this lower position of magnet I'I contact 2I does not bridge contacts 22 but when magnet I 1 is -raised by the proximity of magnet 3 in a ten pin the circuit is completed through these contacts, circuit 24, sig-i nalling device, such as lamp 26 and the source of electric energy P. The lower end of stud I2 is externally threaded as at I5 by means of which the device is secured in the floor by a nut I6.

A board 25 is positioned adjacent the bowling alley, containing a plurality of the signalling lamps 26, and it will be apparent from the device as described that as each ten pin is accurately positioned over a ten pin platform, its magnet 3 will attract magnet I'I in the platform, thus completing the electrical circuit to that particular lamp on the board.

Various modifications in the particular constructions will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art but within the scope of the present invention as claimed.

Having thus fully described my invention I claim:

1. In a bowling alley a plurality of pin platforms, one for each ten pin, magnetic means non-magnetic material set into the iloor and mounted in the base of each ten pin, magnetic means and magnet operated switch means in each pin platform means for concentrating the magnetic eld of said magnetic means and signalling means electrically operated through said switch means for indicating when a ten pin is accurately positioned on a platform.

2. The combination specified in claim l in which the magnetic means in the ten pin and ten pin platform have their adjacent ends tapered and are arranged to be mutually attractive, whereby the magnetic means in the platform is raised when the base of the ten pin is accurately centered over the platform to operate the switch means.

3. The combination specied in claim 1 in which each of the magnetic means comprises a permanent magnet with a tapered end with nonmagnetic means surrounding the said tapered magnet ends both in the base of the ten pin and the ten pin platform to concentrate the magnetic eld between said means to a restricted area.

4. The combination specified in claim l in which the magnetic means in the ten pin and that in the ten pin platform each comprises a permanent magnet having their opposite pole ends tapered, said magnets arranged with said tapered opposite pole ends directed toward the bottom of the ten pin and the top of the ten pin platform.

5. The combination specified in claim l in which the magnetic means in the ten pin and that in the ten pin platform each comprises a permanent magnet, said magnets arranged with opposite poles directed toward the bottom of the ten pin and the top of the ten pin platform, said adjacent ends being tapered and surrounded with non-magnetic material, the magnet in the platform carrying a contact member and being slidable vertically, with switch contact members positioned to form an electric circuit only when said magnet is lifted from its normal position of repose.

JACOB R. KAISERMAN. 

